Chinese noodles with Ken Hom: listen now

Gilly Smith

delicious. podcast producer Gilly is a food journalist who loves to delve into the deep stuff. She's written a total of 16 books throughout her career

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In the next instalment of the Christmas series of the delicious. podcast, I catch up with Ken Hom, the man who brought the wok to British cooking.

We chat about his childhood in Chicago’s Chinatown and why the festive celebrations simply wouldn’t be complete without a plate of his mother’s chicken noodles.

Join me every week for our “It Wouldn’t Be Christmas Without” series, which follows a series of well-known chefs as they show me what Christmas really means to them.

Tune in for a new episode of the delicious. podcast every Thursday.

Chinese noodles with Ken Hom: listen now

“The festive period is ever so stressful”, claims Ken, who finds that the most comforting dish of all around Christmas time is his Cantonese crispy noodles with chicken. It’s so easy to do, as I discover, cooking alongside him in the Dorchester’s iconic kitchen.

As he talks us through the steps in this simple noodle dish, Ken also teaches the technique of “velveting” which is a type of blanching in Chinese cooking. Velveting ensures that any meat doesn’t become overcooked when it’s time to serve up the noodle dish.

I dare you to mix things up this Christmas time: when things become hectic, consider trying Ken’s simple noodle dish that’s a real crowd-pleaser and a change-up from the typical turkey-and-trimmings.

Learn how to make it, by listening along here:

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